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So, I think tomorrow (Saturday) afternoon we could get some pizzas or sandwiches and go over to Petco park's park area, that should be pretty easy to find a nice area to sit and talk.I need to know if we're doing this so I can set up an interview with Hasbro around it. So who is in?

Darth Vader is becoming the Mickey Mouse of Star Wars.

Kylo Ren - came from Space Brooklyn, although he moved to Space Williamsburg before it was trendy.

The use of a lightsaber does not make one a Jedi, it is the ability to not use it.

- Batman Year One screening
- Amy Winehouse
- bad shuttle Challenger jokes
- the kid who asked the Hasbro SW team at their panel why it was so incredibly difficult to get into the HTS line
- Chux and I talked about all the scampers we encountered in the Hasbro lines

Topics of conversation (cont)
- Booth b-i-m-b-o-s, courtesy of Chux.
- Why JT was a dope and didn't buy the other ready-to-go pizza even though it was sausage which nobody seemed to want, and only bought 2 vegetarian slices to round out the foolishness.

Goodbyes
- "Have a good train ride!": me, to Bran.
- "See ya tomorrow probably": Bikerscout to me.
- "...": Chux and Me to each other, since we ended up hanging out for a few more hours with his kid in the con.

So, next year, pizza is a winner I think (Steve will get another sandwich from the Cine, that's his thing and I wholeheartedly agree), but MORE OF IT. Gaslamp Pizza was pretty awesome, very authentic cheap pizza joint, price was ok for the size, $18 for 18", but we should have gotten a supplementary pie and that's all on me. Next year we'll just order in advance what we want instead of letting me screw things up.

Darth Vader is becoming the Mickey Mouse of Star Wars.

Kylo Ren - came from Space Brooklyn, although he moved to Space Williamsburg before it was trendy.

The use of a lightsaber does not make one a Jedi, it is the ability to not use it.

I'm sorry I didn't make it to the SSG get together. I got into a screening of Captain America at the Horton. When the lights came on for the credits, it turned out that Darkagent was seated in front of us. On our way out, we ran into Commtech. It was good to finally meet so many of you whose posts I've interacted with over the years. A particularly large shout-out goes to Figrin Bran, who hooked me up at the Hasbro.

I must share the story of Wednesday night. My lady friend and I arrived to the Comic Con entrance line just after 10AM. We were about the 50th or so people in line. We were let in at 5:50PM. We walked straight down, she went to Entertainment Earth (only to find Faker vs. Bizarro had not arrived) and I went straight to HTS. When I got there, the line was capped and wrapped entirely around the booth. Roughly 300 people were in line. I hung out for over half an hour and the line did not move at all. I was soon after cleared out of the area by "security." This happens every year, I'm sure, but this was the first I've been caught in it. As a result, I had a terrible burning in my gut for the next 4 days, not because I didn't get to buy toys, not because I waited all day, not because I knew there were scalpers and exhibitors in the line, but because I had willingly paid for this injustice. I chose to support a system that is inherently unfair and traditionally poorly run. I paid to get to San Diego as early as I could. I paid to come get in line after line. I woke up extra early every day to get in yet another line that was exhaustive, if I was "lucky" enough to be allowed into it. I was in the 2012 admission line for nearly 6 hours Thursday, then I felt ironically fortunate to have a ticket for the next Con. On Friday, I was at the convention center 3 hours before the Captains panel, but the line was capped. Mattel was a dream come true at 40 minutes to pick up my pre-order. I spent 6 hours in line to get into Ballroom 20 after that. My experience, I'm sure, is not solitary, but shared by most convention goers.

My only positive line experience came on Sunday around 3:30PM. I walked by the HTS line, which was about 5-6 people long then. I noticed that the display cases had been emptied. On the counter behind the cashiers were the two loose Zaranas and the out of the package Starscream/Skystriker. At my lady friend's urging, I wondered aloud if they would sell them to me. One of the ladies behind the register said yes, but only if I stood in line. As a rare courtesy, the woman held them for me until I got up to the front to pay. A patron in front of me bought the Skystriker. As I was paying for both loose Zaranas (pun not intended), another cashier expressed her surprise that I was allowed to purchase them and another told me that the designer himself had posed the figures. So after the entire mess of the past 4 days, I was able to buy what I got there super early to do so. The line was miniscule, the service friendly, and the result happy. Call it a paradox, an oxymoron, or poetic justice, but Comic Con this year made me reevaluate what has been my annual ritual for the past 18 summers. I'm paid through for next year. Along the way there between now and then, this year's debacle will fade in my memory, as most things do. But it is very likely that my Comic Con world will end in 2012...

I've been meaning to ask this but did anyone's credit cards get flagged for fraud when purchasing from HTS at the con?

This happened to me with two cards - one got declined outright while I was paying, the other one went through but then it turns out they put a hold on my account because the HTS charge shows up as being in Rhode Island, Hasbro headquarters.

I think I did get to see everyone who attended except Bikerscout at one point or another.

Sounds like you guys had a nice time.

I might have been at Falling Skies' panel or the Wilfred one.

I also was requested with my Civil War unit to participate in the Costume Masquerade, and since I had real guns (that's what we use), I did not want to spend a lot of time going in and out through security. They ultimately never stopped me or asked me any questions - and my musket was 6 feet long! And no one checked my bayonet, either - a sharpened stabbing weapon. This was the day after the Norway shooting. I could have been a psychopath. Oh wait.... Well, they let me in fully armed anyway.

BAD Pts Need:R5-C7 lf leg (x2), , R4-P44 right leg BAD Pts Offered For Trade: PM me - I have lots of parts now including BG-J38!. New Kyle Katarn is also available.

Maradona -- i'm sorry you had to wait in so many nasty lines (& i was complaining about the short Mattel line when i was in it!). The info you provided me in those texts was invaluable though - thanks again. Did you get the next year tickets???

JT -- funny lunch recap! The tv we were sitting by had the Winehouse headline on for a half hour straight it seemed like. Big story -- but shouldn't have commanded that much attention.

Tycho -- have to meet up with you next time. (Although your gun story makes me nervous......)

figrin bran -- to answer your question, yes, a friend's card was flagged b/c of the R.I. thing on preview night. He was livid. I'm not sure if he was able to make the big purchases with his card, but he called them after finishing at the checkout. I've known him for almost 5 yrs. and this was the maddest I'd ever seen him. After chewing the CSR & co. out - the matter was resolved. I think. At least this isn't the hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil BS that TFsource was pulling when their site got hacked. Absolutely irresponsible handling of that situation & the largest TF sites on the web (not naming any names) are nearly just as guilty for not warning people of the hack ---even if it didn't actually happen (but it actually did, many ppl had posted that their cards were compromised & only used for TFsource). Don't want to go off on a tangent too much, but that whole affair really bothered me. I was lucky to not have fraudulent charges on a card i had used with them